Oklahoma City still below-average for total annual rainfall

Drought continues despite green lawns

Despite significant rain in the last two months in Oklahoma City, 2014 is still below-average for annual rainfall. So far this year, the capital city has had 16.73 inches of rain, which is still 3.18 inches below-average to date. Last year at this time, the yearly total was 31.85 inches.

With the recent rainfall, many people are surprised that the drought is still strong to severe since their lawns are fairly green. The drought level is more than just gauging how moist the top soil is or how green your lawn may be. The drought is deeper than that, accounting for water tables and lake and river levels. Ask any farmer in the area and they will likely tell you their farm ponds are not full and the topsoil is still very dry.

With more rain expected in the next week and an El Nino weather pattern expected for the cold season, expect to see more, slow improvement to the drought in the area. Remember, droughts are long term and they just don't disappear after a round of heavy rain.